Becoming a Top-Tier Survivalist and Representing the Prepper Community, by M.M. – Part 5

Continuing with the final portion of this article of six points that are presented and detailed that, if implemented in your own life, will greatly increase your chances of success, both in surviving TEOTWAWKI and in breaking the stereotype of the “kooky prepper.”

5. Have Faith in Christ

While serving in Virginia Beach back in 2003, I went home for a three-day weekend to attend my former high school’s Monday track meet to watch some friends compete, and there I met a girl who I really liked. She was a Christian and I was not, although I thought I was because that’s what my family had led me to believe. She was not allowed to date me because of that and the fact she was five years younger than me. I told her I would read the Bible and see what it had to say so we could discuss it when she turned eighteen. I bought a *New American Standard Bible, which was the version her church used. (I later bought this 1611 King James Version and read it from beginning to end over the course of about fifteen months – finishing about two weeks before her birthday.) During that time, I attended her church each Sunday to hear the sermon and I also listened to the local Christian talk radio station from 0700 until about 2030 every day. (You can listen, too, at www.wdac.com).

I had previously been under the impression that the Bible was a collection of short stories, poems, songs, and rules to live by and that it was written during the middle ages by monks who wanted people to behave properly and be nice to each other. I also thought that Christians were sissies and needed the Bible as a “crutch” to get through life. (Actually, I still think that a lot of so-called Christians are sissies.) When I began reading, I quickly realized that I was quite mistaken about many things and that the Bible was actually a compilation of books written over the course of nearly two thousand years by multiple authors, including the Jews and the earliest followers of Christ. The Bible is the spiritually-relevant history of the world from Creation until the Church Age, and God’s plan for the future is integrated throughout. Upon reading the Gospel of Matthew, I understood that my sins would prevent me from entering the Kingdom of Heaven and that Jesus’ death on the cross was the only acceptable sacrifice to make up for the wrong things I’ve done. There is no other way to avoid God’s righteous judgment and an eternity separated from Him in the Lake of Fire. I immediately asked Jesus to forgive my sins and I’ve had faith in Him as my Savior ever since. He has changed my life tremendously by assuring me of eternal life, by removing immoral behavior from my Earthly life that was getting me in trouble at the time, by providing me with strong Christian friends who have interests similar to my own, and by providing me with an amazing godly wife (who was previously an atheist but believed in Christ about the same time as I did, before we met each other).

I recommend that you read the Bible all the way through if you haven’t already done so. Educate yourself in God’s word, and place your faith in Jesus Christ. This is the most important step in being prepared. It’s also completely free, and He wants you to do it and become a part of His kingdom! No matter what happens here on Earth, nobody can take eternity with the Lord away from you!

According to the best of my understanding, I would say that we Christians need to focus most of our preparations on resistance against domestic tyranny and the spread of Islam– both of which we’re seeing increase at an alarmingly rapid rate in these last days, and both of which tend to target Christians more than others. Unbelievers need to prepare to resist these human forces as well, but they also need to prepare to survive just about every natural disaster imaginable (aside from a worldwide flood, which God promises will not happen again). Unfortunately, the people who need to read biblical prophecy the most are the least likely to do so. It’s our job, as Christians, to spread the Gospel message and warn others about the dangers of not believing in Jesus while we’re still around; don’t waste the opportunities that God provides for you today.

6. Involve Your Friends and Family

If your situation is anything like mine, then you have both friends and family who believe preparedness is either a mere hobby or an unhealthy obsession and, in either case, a waste of time. They would rather go to bars, watch a game on TV, or engage in some other trivial pursuit to pass their time away rather than be foresightful and constructive with their lives. It will probably take considerable effort to get these sorts of people to even consider the idea of the world, as they know it, falling apart. I usually try to find something useful to give such people for birthdays and Christmas, and I’ll occasionally share some of my thoughts with them, but that’s about all that can be done.

Affiliating with Like-Minded Survivalists

Fortunately, I do have friends and a wife who are aware of, and interested in, many aspects of preparedness and survival. Some were in the military, like me, and continue to practice the skills acquired there. Others simply research and experiment with their own time and money. Either way, I’m grateful for these friendships, because the time spent together is usually productive and interesting, and sometimes we get to have an adventure! I believe that true friends are introduced to one another by divine appointment; however, you may increase your chances of meeting like-minded survivalists by attending church, joining the military, or frequenting a local shooting range, rather than hanging out at parties, bars, and clubs. Also, if you have old friends who joined the military after high school or college and were never heard from again, see if you can find them on Facebook and get back in touch. (Granted, this will be more worth your effort if their job in the military is/was in a combat-related position rather than a technical or administrative one.) I’ve had a few high school friends contact me asking to get together for preparedness purposes, and I felt honored and was happy to oblige them. I’m most blessed to have a wife who is entirely on-board with everything I’ve written here. It should be common sense and only natural to date and marry somebody who has the same interests and beliefs as you. I definitely recommend against marrying someone who has any sort of problem with firearms being in the home. If you find out that your significant other is a hoplophobe and you’re unable to resolve her problem, end the relationship or you will regret it.

Children

If the Lord gives my wife and me children, we plan to raise them to be God-fearing, wise, brave, responsible, and well trained to deal with adversity. Whether they are boys or girls, I hope to create warriors and teach them everything I know. Hopefully, you will have the same opportunity within your own family. My advice here is as follows:

Always be honest with your children according to your best knowledge, but keep things age-appropriate; if something is “too adult” for them at a certain point, tell them that they don’t need to know it yet rather than fabricating a story, because later in life they will resent having been lied to.

Beginning as young as possible, teach your children to properly handle and use a variety of practical weapons, including firearms, pepper spray, knives, and blunt objects. (Nutnfancy has posted an excellent video about raising children to be responsible and proficient with firearms).

Take your children outdoors to do adventurous activities, such as hiking, camping, climbing trees and rocks, and swimming in natural waters.

Also, involve them in your household/homesteading work to the point that they can confidently perform the same skills as you, without your supervision.

Do not allow any video games in your home. Like your parents have probably told you: just because everyone else is doing it doesn’t mean you need to do it too. Video games are a total waste of time and money and cause disengagement and isolation from family and friends.

Be active and have fun with your kids, so that your entire family stays in good shape and gets to enjoy each other’s company.

Be responsible and use common sense, but don’t be a safety zealot. People have survived fine for thousands of years without all the helmets, pads, harnesses, glasses, life-vests, et cetera that have recently been prescribed by “professionals” for every activity under the sun. These things could possibly prevent an injury or they may never prove necessary, but they will definitely drain your kids’ excitement and motivation to participate in any given activity. Use only necessary forms of protection.

Take your children to church and keep them with you to worship and hear the sermon; don’t send them off to “children’s church” daycare to play games, watch puppet shows, and talk about sheep and shepherds. If you have a good Bible-believing pastor who presents relevant messages to the congregation, then your children should be able to sit and listen to him for 30 to 45 minutes once a week; if not, then you either need to better discipline your children or move on to a better church.

In all things, remember that your children are individuals and won’t necessarily be just like you or each other. Don’t force them to participate in purposeless activities that they dislike, but encourage them to learn and practice the important things.

I hope my advice has been beneficial and interesting and given you some new ideas to contemplate. Work hard and put forth the time and money necessary to become a well-trained, well-equipped, and well-rounded survivalist. Make sure your speech, actions, and appearance reflect well upon the prepper community, and most importantly “Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters” (Revelation 14:7).

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James Wesley Rawles

James Wesley, Rawles (JWR) is Founder and Senior Editor of SurvivalBlog, the original prepping /survival blog for when the Schumer Hits The Fan (SHTF). He began SurvivalBlog in 2005. It now reaches more than 320,000 unique visitors weekly.
JWR is a journalist, technical writer, and novelist. His survivalist novel Patriots: Surviving the Coming Collapse, is a modern classic that reached #3 on the New York Times bestsellers list. Two of his other novels have also been best New York Times bestsellers.
Jim is the originator of the American Redoubt movement and a frequent talk show guest on shows such as Alex Jones. He is also a retreat consultant specializing in off-grid living, rural relocation, and survival preparedness.

Hugh James Latimer

Hugh James Latimer (HJL) is the Managing Editor of SurvivalBlog, the original blog for prepping and survival for when SHTF, where he manages the blog's day-to-day operations, applying his diverse technical, management, and editorial expertise.
HJL earned college degrees in engineering, metallurgy, and education and has worked as Technical Editor for five international technical journals and as an engineer for Sandia National Laboratories. His deep scientific background ranges from aerospace engineering to systems administration and owning his own technology-intensive business.
HJL is a firefighter/EMT, and Ham radio operator. He's a Libertarian, an Eagle Scout, and most importantly a devoted follower of Jesus and the Bible.

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